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The England national team will commence their UEFA Euro 2028 journey at the Etihad Stadium, assuming they achieve the expected qualification for a competition hosted across the bulk of Britain and the Irish Republic.

City’s stadium has not staged an English men’s match since eight years ago, when the Turkish team were defeated 2-1 in a warm-up game, but is highly likely to welcome the national team for their opening fixture on June 10, 2028.

The English side are set to play their final two group matches at Wembley Stadium, but, in the event of winning Group B, their knockout stage opener would be held at Newcastle’s St James’ Park. Placing second would mean starting the knockouts at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Tournament Launch and Rally

The tournament was inaugurated at an event in Piccadilly Circus on Wednesday night. Senior figures from Uefa and the host football associations were barracked as they entered the venue by approximately 50 activists, who urged the Israeli team to be removed from global football because of the Gaza crisis.

Signs were held up with slogans stating “Show Israel the red card” and “You are complicit”, while activists shouted: “Kick Israel out.”

Event Schedule

The inaugural fixture of the European Championship will be staged at the the national stadium of Wales in the Welsh capital, on Friday 9 June, a match that will feature the Welsh team if they qualify.

Wembley Stadium will host both semi-finals and the final, which will be staged on July 9, 2028 with a kick-off time at 5:00 PM.

It is anticipated that an afternoon start, which will also be adopted for UEFA Champions League finals from the following campaign, will attract family audiences and help engage a wider spectrum of fans.

Host Nations

The Ireland are scheduled to play their first game at the Aviva Stadium and Scotland would play similarly at Glasgow’s Hampden Park.

Each host nation’s squad will participate in the qualifying tournament; two reserved places will be held in reserve for any that fail to qualify for the tournament through that route.

Venues and Elimination Phase

Villa Park and The North London arena finalize the nine tournament locations. All will hold at least one playoff fixture, with the quarter-finals staged at every host’s main arena.

The qualification draw will be staged in Belfast, which was excluded as a host city last year when it became clear Casement Park could not be renovated in time, on December 6, 2026.

Official Statement

“The event will be a competition for the supporters and a festival of everything we cherish about the game – its passion and ability to unite individuals.”

More than three million passes, a all-time high for a UEFA European Championship, are expected to be made available to supporters.